Pitt students learn dos and don’ts of talking to profs

Some students may find it difficult to connect with their professors, high aloft in their… Some students may find it difficult to connect with their professors, high aloft in their “Ivory Towers.”

“How to Talk to a Professor” – a workshop held in Thackeray Hall last night – attempted to address issues that many students have with the prospect of talking one-on-one with their professors.

The workshop was organized by the Arts and Sciences Advising Center. Advisers Janna Zuroski and Stephanie Whatule and English professor Jim Seitz shared tips with an audience of mostly freshmen on how to connect with professors.

They cited several examples of why students would need to meet individually with a professor, including how to prepare for an upcoming test or paper, asking for a letter of recommendation or a dispute with a grade, and why some students are intimidated to do so.

They said students shouldn’t come to professors at the last minute for help on a test or paper. And Seitz added that students should ask for letters of recommendation at least a month in advance.

Whatule said that one mistake many students make is asking their professors to “just tell me what’s important.” This suggests that most of what that professor has to say may not be important.

Seitz said another question professors hate to hear is, “Um, hey, I wasn’t here last week. Did I miss anything?”

He said students should come to their professors with specific questions, instead of asking them to rehash everything he or she taught.

Zuroski and Whatule said that if a student has a problem with a professor, he shouldn’t complain to the chair of that professor’s department or go to a dean before talking to the professor about the problem first.

They also warned that professors are human and have bad days like anyone else. If a student has a bad experience talking to a professor, he shouldn’t give up after one try.

Seitz said he had many more personal relationships with students at smaller colleges where he has taught.

“It’s very hard to cultivate relationships with students [at Pitt],” which he described as a big, anonymous university. He encouraged students to actively seek out more personal contact with their professors.

The workshop will be held again tonight at 6 p.m. in 201 Thackeray Hall.